Railway system.



1. A. ROMER.

RAILWAY SYSTEM.

APPLICATION HLED MAY 19, 1915.

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5U \&J g Jomv ALEXANDER RoMsR 3513 e lmwm THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D. C

J. A. ROMER.

RAILWAY SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY [9, 1915.

1,168,676 Patented 31111.18, 1916.

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h wcwfoz JOHN ALEXANDER Romaa @331 M QH'OM THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WAShlNu'lUN, D. c.

.l. A. ROMER.

RAILWAY SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 19. 1915.

1,168,676. Patented Ja11.18,1916.

3 SHEET$SHEET 3- 5 wvmboz JOHN ALEXANDER RoMER 35g M (Mic awe THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH. co., WASHINGTON, D. c.

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JOHN ALEXANDER RAILWAY SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed ma 19, 1915. Serial No. 29,072.

1 '0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JoHN ALEXANDER ROMER, subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at London, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railway Systems; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to a combined lift, or elevator, and railway system for buildings, emporiums, department stores, scenic railways and other purposes, for conveying passenger cars over the several floors and liftthem from one floor to another without the passengers having to leave their seats.

The invention relatesmore particularly to means for automatically accomplishing the above mentioned purpose and has for its object to provide special means for automatically operating'and controlling the cars when entering or leaving the lifts and for automatically operatingfthelifts.

For a better understanding of the invention it will now be described in connection with the accompanying drawings showing, by way of example, one of manypossible embodiments 'of the invention and in which F igurel is a diagrammatic perspective view illustrating the arrangement of tracks and lifts in connection with. a building of four floors; Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation of one of the series of lifts for raising the cars from one floor to the next floor above; Fig; 3 isa similar view of a similar device for lowering the car from the top to the bottom floor after the whole trip has beencompleted. Fig. 4: isa sectional view 4 l of Fig. 2.

In Fig. 1 the system is shown inconnection with a building having floors 1, 2, 3 and 4, having thereon respectively tracks 5, 6, 7 and 8. Lifts 9 serve to raise thecars 10 from the tracksof each one of the three lower floors to the track of thefloor next above. The lowering device 11 serves to lower the car from the top to the bottom floor after the trip has been'completed. The

cars are driven by a motor 12 (Fig. 4) which may be of anydesired form; If it is an electric motor, it may receive current, while on the lift, from conducting rails 14 through The conducting rails 14on the lift receive current through-flexible cables secured to the platform of the lift, and pulleys 29 secured to the structure of the building.

One end of the cables is secured to the drum, the other end supporting cables pass-' onrro.

Patented (121111. 18, 1916.

which receive current fromthe being secured to the lift and thus when the 2 driving wheel of the car engages and rotates the grooved wheel 22, the lift is drawn up.

'lhe grooved wheel 22 and the pinion 23 are ournaIed to an arm 30 pivoted for slight angular movement and having a slot at its free end. A short shaft 31 carrying a roller 82 engages in said slot and is held therein by a bifurcated pivoted support 3i p in which said short shaft is journaled. Said grooved wheel, arm, roller and pivoted member are held at their upper limit of movement by a key lever 35 engaging under said pivoted member and held in locking position by a spring 36. When said roller 32 is in said upper locked position and the drive wheel of the'car resting thereon and in the groove 21, the car is held against further forward movement and is at the same time held up off of. the track rail and is free to turn by the action of rotate the grooved wheel and consequently the winding drum cables 26 on thewinding drum and drawing up the lift. Upward movement of the lift with the car the head of the rail permitting the still rotating drive wheel 20 to engage the rail and move the car off the lift platform, at the same timethe grooved the motor and thus thus winding up the thereon continues until the free end 37 of the lever 35 strikes the stop The stop lever is held tion of the dotted lines and permits the I roller 31 to drop below wheeli22 to their. upper .positiomrei-easing and throws the latter off the dead-center,"

thus raising the stop lever 38 and permitting the lever 35 to resume its normal posi-' tion under the influence of thegspring 36 thus forcing the roller 32 an'dthe grooved the wheel 22' hem the'action of'the'band brakes, permitting, the lift to d escend of its own weight retarded to an extent by the couiiterweight "48 or other suitable device. In like finahn'er, the car is raised to each floor iiiitil the top floor is reacl d,ivhen the I car is ropenedtothe lowering device 11.

The. constructlon of the apparatus of the, lowering device is similar to that of v the lifts except that the cables 26 passing over 'thepulleys 28 are anchored below the bottoiii hear, so that .the car pulls itself down, instead ef-up, against the-action of When the lowering the-coiinteriveights 48 a p .defvi'ce reaehesrhe bottom floor the end 37 of, the key lever 35 strikes the sto p lever V ssbfalemma the support 39' mounted beneath the bottom floor. The stop lever 38' is held agaiiistldowilward movement by the toggle 'lever'sftl held on the dead centerby the spring 42. This throws theikeylever 35. to the position of the full lines and perg mits the roureito drop below thehead of the rail, whereupon the car moves oh" the platform of tilt? lowering device, the band bra ke '44 takes hold and the finger 45 comes into engagement with the projecting end 46 of the toggle lever 41'.thus lowering the stop lever 38 and permitting the key lever to assume the position of the dotted lines under the action of the spring 36. This causes the wheel 22 300 move out of engagement with the hand brake permitting the lowering device to ascend under the action of the counterweights;

The operation be briefly summarized as follows :,A car in the lift in the position shownin Fig. l, with the ewe turned on operates the lift and draws itself and the lift to'fthe next floor above where engage ment of the keylever 35 with the stop lever 38 causes the liftto be held stationary while i the car is released and passes to the next lift, passing over the section 18 whereby the amount-of current to the motoris cut down and the car passes slowly on to the lift, whereupon the car reached again and the operation repeated until the car reaches the lowering device 11, descending to soon as the finger 45 on its lower position as i the cartrips the toggle levers 41, NVhen the car, reaches theilowering device same r'eeti n, is, er a sd. e e r t at. he a from the rear of the .car engages cars, floors, andthe details of each may be mod1fied ac-.. cording tothe conditions.

draws itself and-the lowering device to the -bdttoin-floor w-herei1pon the 'car is --released and passes to the track 5. 1

, The. structure and operation illustrated may the wgreatly.ivaried without departing from the scope of the invention as claimed. For-instance, any number or arrangement of lifts and tracks may be used,

mafia as my invention:-

l. In a railway system, apair of floors; J

a platform cotiperating tracks and contact rails pn sa d floors and platform a car adapted to receive current from said ralls and to be propelled thereby on said tracks;

and-means {associated with the platform and adapted to bepperate'd by the car to move said platform from one-floor to the other.

2:5[narailway system, the combination of a armature, hating a plurality of floors; traclis .on said fi'oors; cars on said tracks;

lifts'lavin -track s thereon and adapted tocarry teatim thetracks of one floor to the mer er the floor next'above; a lowering device adapted-to. transfer cars from -the tracli i of top iioort'o the traclrofthe bottornfiooma Lniotor for driving said car;

ii l ep r dhvft iv Whe l o thea r iie'iaan 'the -i t a,

In 'a railway system, thecombinatioh of structure having a plurality of floors;

tracks on floors; cars on, said tracks;

lifts having tracks thereon and .i da'ptedrto carry cars wfrom the tracks of one floor to the tracks of-thefloor next above; a lowering device ;adapted to transfer cars from the track ofthe top ffloor tothe track of thebot; tom floor; a motor for driving said car; and means operatedgbythe drive wheel of the car foroperatingthe lift'and the lowering'device.

In a railway system, the 'combination of a structure h ng a pl ty o oors;

transfer-ring means for transferring cars fro cars between the tracks of the floors mostdistant from each other {means for rotating I a wheelof the car todrive the car; and

tracks on said floors for said car;

hack of one to thettack of, i if V a t e fid'l lcenpflpmg means f transferring means by wheel to'operate the transferring means.

;5. In a-railvay system, the combination of Setsoii stat enar-y' tracks at different levels;

a platform, having a track adapted tO'COt',

operate wirithrthe stationary tracksga car on sald tracksg brake means for moving the platformfromeone' tion wheel ,ror operating said means and d to be rotated by the drive wheel of;

holding means for holding-the drive e the-car; y I wheel off the track rail and in contact with thefriction wheel; a brake zforrth'e moving level to theothjerga fr1cmeans mewsgr r m temet ce ly r as g the holding means and applying the brake when a car is carried to a track onto which it is to pass; and means for rendering inoperative said last named means when the car leaves the platform.

6. In a railway system, the combination of a platform having track rails and contact rails thereon; sets of stationary track rails and contact rails at different levels and adapted to cooperate with the rails of the platform, certain of the contact rails having therein insulated sections connected by a resistance to the main part of the rail; a car for the tracks and adapted to receive current from said contact rails; a winding drum and a pivoted arm secured to the platform; a grooved wheel mounted on said arm and adapted to be frictionally engaged by the drive wheel of the car and having operative connection with said drum; cables secured to said drum for moving the platform as the drum is rotated; a roller adapted to engage the drive wheel; a hand brake adapted to engage the grooved wheel; a pivoted sup port; a key lever adapted to engage said support; a spring adapted to cause said lever to press against said pivoted support to lift said grooved wheel away from the hand brake and to cause said roller to lift the drive wheel off the track rail; a stop lever adaptedto cause said key lever to release said support when the tracks of the platform move into cooperation with the stationary tracks; and means carried by the car for putting the stop lever into inoperative positionwhen the car passed onto the stationary tracks.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN ALEXANDER ROMER.

Witnesses:

GEORGE ANDREW HEATLEY,

O. J. WORTH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C." 

